Results: 2024 Arkansas General Election

KUAR | By Daniel Breen, Josie Lenora, Maggie Ryan

Several national, state and local races were decided on Election Day in Arkansas. Here’s a roundup of some of the most prominent races statewide, and here in central Arkansas.

U.S. House of Representatives

All four Republican incumbent members of Arkansas’ delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives won re-election Tuesday. In the 2nd Congressional District, which encompasses most of Little Rock, Rep. French Hill beat his Democratic challenger, Col. Marcus Jones.

Jones said he’s proud of the campaign he ran to unseat the longtime incumbent. He called Hill to concede the race Tuesday night. In his concession speech, he thanked voters and spoke about reproductive rights.

Results: 2024 Arkansas General Election

John Sykes /Arkansas Advocate

The Arkansas State Capitol building in Little Rock.

Republican Party of Arkansas facing internal lawsuit

KUAR | By Josie Lenora

A lawsuit has been filed stemming from the Republican Party of Arkansas’ decision to hold closed primaries. 

At a biennial convention in June, the party voted to close their primaries. This would mean that only registered Republicans could vote in primary elections. Hypothetically, having closed primaries could make winning candidates more conservative, as they would be chosen by a voter pool of people only within their own party.

The suit is being brought by state Republican Convention Chair Jennifer Lancaster. The lawsuit says the Arkansas GOP’s internal rules give them the power to make this change. Weeks after the vote, party chairman Joseph Wood nullified the decision claiming the party violated their own rules in making the decision. The disagreement represents a current disagreement in the party over ideology and rule implementation.

Republican Party of Arkansas facing internal lawsuit

Michael Hibblen/Little Rock Public Radio

The suit is asking for the primaries in Arkansas to be closed after the state Republican Party voted to close them this year.

Sanders has firm lead in GOP gubernatorial primary, Jones on track to win Democratic bid without runoff

by Talk Business & Politics staff (staff2@talkbusiness.net)

The general election matchup for Arkansas Governor is shaping up to be Republican Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Democrat Chris Jones, according to a new survey from Talk Business & Politics and Hendrix College.

The surveys, conducted May 2, 2022, tested opinions of GOP and Democratic primary voters for the seat held by term-limited Gov. Asa Hutchinson.

Among 802 likely Republican primary voters, the results were:

Governor
72.5% – Sarah Huckabee Sanders
16.5% – Francis “Doc” Washburn
11% – Undecided

Among 597 likely Democratic primary voters, the results were:

Governor
2% – James “Rus” Russell
3.5% – Jay Martin
59.5% – Chris Jones
3% – Anthony Bland
1.5% – Supha Xayprasith-Mays
30.5% – Undecided

https://talkbusiness.net/2022/05/sanders-has-firm-lead-in-gop-gubernatorial-primary-jones-on-track-to-win-democratic-bid-without-runoff/

Roe reversal would trigger Arkansas’ anti-abortion law

KUAR | By Michael Tilley/ Talk Business & Politics

Arkansas Republican political leaders praised a likely U.S. Supreme Court decision ending abortion rights while decrying the leak of the court’s draft opinion. The state’s Democratic Party chair said taking away a constitutional right will not long succeed.

Politico reported late Monday the contents of a leaked 98-page draft opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito distributed to the other justices on Feb. 10. Alito wrote that “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start,” a direct rebuttal of the legal precedent set by the court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision which granted abortion rights.

https://www.ualrpublicradio.org/local-regional-news/2022-05-03/roe-reversal-would-trigger-arkansas-anti-abortion-law

Brian Chilson/Arkansas Times

Arkansas state Sen. Jason Rapert speaking to reporters in February 2021 as a near-total abortion ban was advancing through the legislature.